Identity Dynamics in Crisis Contexts

Abstract

Organizations now face more crises, from global pandemics and economic depressions to business catastrophes – all of which can strain operational processes and performance (Wright et al., 2020; Williams et al., 2017). Research has shown that crises can engender organizational growth, learning, and identity (Fink et al., 1971), and such dynamics can trickle down to the individual and group levels. Scholars describe organizational identification as an alignment between individual and collective identities, resulting in a sense of unity between the person and their organization (e.g., Ashforth et al., 2008; Gutierrez et al., 2010) – even amidst “a backdrop of change and ‘outside’ elements” (Cheney and Thompkins, 1987: 5). The ways in which a group identity can shape and be shaped by individual and organizational effects in crisis contexts, however, remain largely underexplored. This symposium brings together four field-based investigations of the interplay of individual, group, and organizational identity dynamics. First, Creary examines different identity strategies that organizational members used to prevent the organizational death of a community hospital. Second, Creary and colleagues unpack independent workers’ experiences during the pandemic, and how they created a greater sense of resilience during this time of crisis. Third, Mudiyanselage and Vough consider the effects the COVID-19 pandemic had on teachers’ identities, centering on identity instability. Finally, Eun and Wrzesniewski focus on identity dynamics for those caring for the most ill patients across two units in a major academic medical hospital during the COVID-19 crisis, and how this process affected identity transitions and outcomes. Michael Pratt, a distinguished scholar with influential research on identity, identification, and meaning, will serve as the discussant to provide both theoretical and practical implications as well as future research directions. IDENTITY DYNAMICS IN CRISIS CONTEXTS Presenter: Eunice Eun; Yale School of Management Presenter: Amy Wrzesniewski; Yale U.